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Friday, July 13, 2018

If you’re feeling depressed and lazy about getting things done, you need to improve your self-esteem.

This is because if your self-esteem is low, you’d achieve little and might even lose the things you’ve already accomplished. People with low self-esteem lack the will to carry on. For your job, your health and your loved ones, this is dangerous. You’d become unproductive, become sick and lose the company of people dear to you.

But the question is, how did you even get here in the first place? You used to be highly-spirited and goal-driven. But suddenly, you just don’t feel like it anymore. It’s strange. But people don’t have low self-esteem because they want to, some things definitely must have caused it.

You can have low self-esteem if you’re…

·lonely

·abandoned

·bullied

·abused

·deeply worried about something

All of these can crush your belief in yourself. They can destroy your zeal and make you feel unloved. Worst, they can make you lose your mind.

But, what if I told you there’s a way out. What if I showed you proven practical steps you can take to improve your self-esteem!

Talk your way to stardom

Yes, say it loud. You’ve got a deadline approaching, say to yourself: I’m going to beat this deadline! People with high self-esteem believe in the power of talking about their abilities. When you talk about things you can do, rather than focus on those you think you can’t do, you’re a step forward to achieving that particular goal. So talk positively about yourself, because most times our words become our beliefs. What we believe we act it. When you think and talk positively about yourself, you’re boosting your confidence.

Believe in yourself

If you really want to overcome low self-esteem, then you should start acting it right now! Start to believe that you can do things your natural conditioning would believe otherwise. And to achieve this, you need to stop comparing yourself with others. Your friend is super good at writing. And so what? Go learn it too. For how could you ever know you are better at something when you haven’t even tried? So Mark Twain is right all along when he said that the secret of getting ahead is getting started. You’re admiring something from a distance and thinking yourself unfit for it. Why would you even do that when you’ve got great skills and talents deposited in you by God. But you would never know that you have greatness within you if you allow yourself to be weighed down by your thinking that others are better than you. Worst is when you think that you cannot even surpass someone in a particular field. Who told you that you cannot become greater than even your coach; who told you that you cannot achieve extraordinary things in life? Go out there and stop comparing yourself with others. Instead, compete with yourself and develop yourself every single day. When you do this, your self-esteem would rise.

Dare your Mistakes

For many of us, our mistakes are our number one enemies. Why? Because we allow them to be. Simple! But the moment we confront our mistakes and turn them to our strength, we would realize how greatly we’re gifted. Overcoming our challenges then becomes easy. You’re a gift, each and every one of us. We possess the ability to achieve great things in life. It’s just that…

·We are scared

·We don’t want to fail

·We don’t want our friends to make a jest of us

·We don’t want to appear weak to people

These are the reasons we are damn scared of making mistakes right? Well, that’s not cool. Actually, these should really be the reasons we should make the mistakes. When we make mistakes, our fear of failure is defeated and then trying out new things becomes a hobby. Great people have trodden this path. Also, you wouldn’t know how badly you fared at something if nobody is there to judge you. But it’s not the judging that should bother you, for that in itself is harmless, it is you not learning anything from that experience. And many of us always want to appear superhuman to others, like we only want to be known that we are good at everything. So we don’t want to fail so people wouldn’t see that we are human after all! Ring a bell? Well, that’s not smart enough. Have you suddenly forgotten that to err is human? Want to improve your self-esteem, make as many mistakes as you can, for, for every success, there must have been at least 12 mistakes.

Here’s the thing

You’ve got low self-esteem and you know it. Wherever you go, you don’t just feel the spirit to own it. Whatever you do, you lack the energy. And then you’ve started to feel like: I’m tired of it all. Maybe you’re a student approaching graduation and you just feel like quitting. Or you’re an aspiring footballer with, no break, not even in a local league. You could even be a jobseeker already feeling all the people employed are better than you, despite your qualifications. And you’ve begun to see life differently, as though you don’t fit in the game. Hang on a second. Let me tell you this: if you can work on your self-esteem by trying to implement the above points, congrats because you’re on your way to success.

Monday, April 9, 2018

Americanah written by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie chronicles the intriguing and troubling life of Ifemelu, a young, love-filled girl with ambition.

In Trenton, Ifemelu goes to plait her hair. There she comes to realise the world of the African. Already a blogger about race in America, Ifemelu finds the opportunity to delve into the reality of Blacks from African countries such as Nigeria. Far away from home, from her family and her lover, Obinze, in Lagos, Efemelu stops sending messages to Obinze probably because she has found a better company in Blaire, her new Black American boyfriend.

Obinze attends a party organised by Chief, the man who had single-handedly helped him rise from grass to grace. Shortly after deportation from England, the man, Chief, as he is fondly called, had effortlessly made him a successful estate manager.

Aunty Uju is Ifemelu’s father’s sister who is mistress to the General, a powerful and wealthy man in the Nigerian military government. He is responsible for Aunty Uju's sudden rise to wealth after her miserable post-university life. A week after Aunty Uju delivers a baby boy, the military government is overthrown and the General is among the military officers executed in the coup. Her sorrowful condition is aggravated by the General’s family members asking her to vacate the apartment. Frustrated and confused, Aunty Uju leaves for America where she now stays with her son, Dike.

When everything becomes tough for Ifemelu’s father, who has been sacked from work, Aunty Uju helped Ifemelu get a student visa to join her in the US. There in America is where Ifemelu discovers the realities of living abroad, especially in the utopian country, the United States of America. In America, Ifemelu is first confronted by the fact that America is not really a heaven as has been painted often in the movies. She also observes another problem in America – the issue of race. After battling to get a job using another person’s identity to no avail, Ifemelu becomes fed up with everything. When the rent of Ifemelu’s flat is due, she has no money. But when she eventually gets a job with a man, a baseball coach who desperately needs massage and female company willing to pay Ifemelu a hundred dollars per day, she later hates herself for doing such a dirty job. She then becomes depressed and cut all communication with Obinze and her family.

Luckily, she eventually gets a babysitting job, where she meets Kurt, who suddenly becomes her boyfriend, and with the help of whom, she secures her stay, through a work permit. She later wants to try something new and so she cheats on Kurt by having sex with a neighbour. This marks the end of her relationship with Kurt. By this time, Ifemelu has already become a popular blogger about race in America.

On the train one day, Ifemelu comes across Blaire, a Black American college professor whom she suddenly falls in love with. Later, they meet at a seminar to which Ifemelu has been invited as a blogger. With Blaire Ifemelu’s discoveries of life in America takes a new turn. Not only does she become more popular, she is also introduced into the fold of scholars in America. Through the help of Blaire she is able to get into the American fellowship where she lectures a group of college students. All of this makes Ifemelu so successful and rich that she is able not to only regularly send money home to her folks, but also to afford her parents’ visit.

Meanwhile, Obinze, who had been denied a visa to America many times, is now in England. But the turbulence of an immigrant life in England renders his travelling abroad a nightmare. Getting a job as a casual labourer for a construction company is soon short-lived because the person whose work permit he is using is demanding a raise Obinze cannot afford. In anger, he informs his place of work and Obinze stops going to work. After realising that he might be able to pay the balance to arrange his sham marriage with an Angolan English girl who seems to have fallen in love with him, he seeks help from his Nigerian friend and classmate, Emenike, who is now also in England married to a white woman. On the day of the wedding, Obinze is arrested and is removed from England.

Even Aunty Uju, like all emigrant Blacks from Africa, is not spared the racial prejudice by White Americans. Her practice as a visiting doctor is wrought with racial comments and acts by her white patients who feel she is unfit to occupy her post because of her skin colour. Even Aunty Uju’s case is understandable. What is extreme is the racial insults and abuse hauled at the young and fragile but intelligent and witty Dike. In short, the frustration resulting from this nearly costs the young boy his life through an abortive suicide attempt. It is for this reason that Ifemelu has delayed her return to Nigeria.

Ifemelu finally returns to Nigeria and comes to realise how torn apart she is within herself. She now feels a sense of loss – a sense of dual identity. She can no longer fit into the Nigerian life she was once used to. When she gets a job at Aunty Onenu’s celebrity gossip blog named Zoe, she is exposed to the lies and fake of most Nigerian establishments. As if she is no longer Nigerian, she shrugs at the revelation that most celebrities Aunty Onenu’s Zoe interviews actually pay for the services. For acting this way, her co-worker, Zemaye and Doris see Ifemelu as someone who seems to have fallen from another planet. She quits and starts her own blog in which she features the realities of life in Lagos. Dike visits Ifemelu in Lagos.

Finally, Obinze re-unites with Ifemelu and their love life is reinvigorated again. Unlike when they started dating, were young, and still in school and trying to avoid mistakes, sex now seems a pastime for both of them, as they engage in it almost every day. Without a doubt, Obinze does not love his wife and mother of his children, Kosi, because he feels his life is in no way connected with hers.

Kosi finds out about her husband’s escapade, but instead of being mad at him, she begs that they sustain the relationship, at least as father and mother to the children. Unyielding and determined, especially for the marathon of sex he now enjoys with Ifemelu, Obinze packs out of the house, set to be living alone in his flat at Parkview. He begs Ifemelu to allow him in, which she finally does.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah is indeed an eye-opener for a lot of Nigerian youths or even African youths who are American wannabe. After reading this witty and well-crafted novel, I interviewed some readers, who enthusiastically told me that the novel, Americanah, has sprouted in them an unquenchable yearning for America: that through this novel, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has resuscitated their deferred dream of travelling abroad.

Thursday, August 17, 2017

The
Virtuous Woman by Zainab Alkali is a love story about
the easy and principled life of a young beautiful woman named Nana Ai, as she discovers
love at first sight and the strangeness that often accompanies such a feeling.

The village of Zuma has just been blessed with the
news that two of their daughters, Laila and Hajjo have made it into the
prestigious Her Majesty’s College at Birni Dala. Even though the two girls are
not the first to enjoy this privilege (already a student there is Nana Ai, but
now on a holiday), the entire village often takes the pride that one of their
own are in the popular school. This is because Her Majesty’s College is the
kind of school mostly attended by children born with a silver spoon in their
mouths.

But the girls have got different reasons they are
excited about attending the new school. For Hajjo, a sixteen year old girl, who
lives with her grandmother, the admission is an escape from a life she believes
she does not deserve. She is not only maltreated by the rest of the members of
the family but she is also poorly fed and clothed. In her extended family home,
she feels like an outcast. For this reason, she so longs for the journey. Laila
on the other hand, is a spoilt brat and a forward girl. She is loquacious and uncouth.
She is Hajjo’s cousin. She longs for the journey to the new school so she could
be free to do as she pleases.

But the two younger girls have already been placed
under the care of a more mature and principled Nana. Time for the journey and
the girls are accompanied to the bus park by Nana’s father, Baba Sani, who
never stops reminding Nana never to relent in exhibiting all the good virtues
he has taught him.

But as soon as the old man goes back home, Laila
gets into her element. She goes into the nearby bush only to resurface with a
painted face and lips, looking like a slut. She believes that is the only way
they can get a free ride and gets to their destination on time. A car stops by
but Nana will not allow them to take it because the man in the car does not
look responsible.

When they get to the Secretariat the Secretary is not
around. They meet the clerk-receptionist instead who is hostile to them. But of
course, Laila enjoys the company of two boys, Abubakar and Bello. Bello is a
rich boy while Abubakar is from a poor home. They are both students at King’s
College. When the girls go back to check the secretary the
next day they find out he is the man whose free ride they had rudely turned
down the other day. The man is to give them the transport fare and an escort. As
a way of punishing the girls, especially Nana for her rudeness, the secretary gives
them Mallam Jauro, a seventy years old man as escort.

The journey is a long one and everybody on the bus
has started to know one another. The driver is a very careful one, unlike those
of other two buses speeding in front of them, Allah Kiyaye and Allah Seriki. When
the rain begins, the two buses with the reckless drivers are now stuck in a
little ditch, making it impossible for other vehicles including the one the girls
are travelling in to pass. So together all the passengers in the three buses are
stuck.

Now bound together by fate, all the passengers have
to come to terms with how to survive their predicament. As they are in the
middle of a forest with no dwelling in sight, they have to make themselves
happy. To start with, they need to have something to eat. At first, nobody
wants to volunteer to go to the nearby village to get food. However, Bello and
Abubakar volunteer, and each passenger contributes the money with him or her and
the boys go with the teacher’s bicycle to get them food. When they return
everybody eats and has enough and Musa Doggo treats everyone to a nice music
and entertains them with his jest. The man becomes a jester and a lively person
to disguise his unfortunate situation about which Nana is told by the mother of
the twins.

When the road is dry, the lorries are finally moved back
on track and the journey resumes. As though what happened earlier was a warning,
the two carelessly speeding Lorries are later to be found wrecked in a ghastly
motor accident. Almost all the passengers in the two buses are dead, except for
the drivers. Some other people sustain a very serious injury. Abubakar is dead
but Bello is alive with an injury. The injured ones, including Bello, are taken
to the hospital.

The girls are on the train to Birni Dala. While on
the train, Nana and the two girls, Hajjo and Laila, sit in front of a sleeping boy
who appeared to have sustained some injuries. Because he uses a newspaper to
cover his face, none of the girls can recognise him. An army officer aboard the
train relates well with the girls and invites them for lunch. The two
girls consent except for Nana, who is bent on not collecting anything from a
stranger. While the girls are gone with the officer, Nana recognises the
sleeping man as Bello. Both get along well and have a hearty conversation, with
each unable to conceal his or her affection towards the other, even though none
of them mentions it directly. It is very clear now that Nana is in love with Bello
but is very shy to express it. Both understand this and decide to communicate
only telepathically. When the train arrives Birni Dala, Nana reads the letter sent them by
the old man, Mallam Jauro, their escort. It also comes with some money. They
are happy to know that at last the man is still alive, despite all he had been
through during the long journey.

Do you find this synopsis of The Virtuous Woman by Zainab Alkali helpful? Share it with your friends!

Wednesday, July 26, 2017

The
Concubine by Elechi Amadi is an interesting novel replete
with several issues bothering on communal life, love, superstition, death, widowhood
and fate. All of these have been well-crafted into the main thrust of the story,
which makes the novel one of Africa’s masterpieces ever, both in terms of content
and form.

In the novel, The Concubine, Elechi Amadi demonstrates
an exceptional bond borne out of communal co-existence. Life in Amokachi and
the surrounding villages is filled with deep love and respect for one another. Though
the inhabitants of these villages are not related by blood, they care about one
another and are there for one another in times of anguish and sorrow. When
Emenike dies, Ihuoma is not left alone when the raining season starts. Ekwueme
and others feel the sense of responsibility to help her thatch her leaking
roof. Houses are built so close to one another that one person can overlook the
other in case of trouble or any external invasion. This makes it easy for people
to be their brothers’ keeper. In short, one villager’s worry or glory is
another’s. It is such near-perfect, beautiful world that characterised the
African life before the intrusion of the heartless and mischievous white
colonialists. It is what the highly celebrated African literary icon, Chinua
Achebe demonstrates in his award-winning and widely translated novel, Things Fall Apart.

Of course, love, being
a universal theme, often forms a major concern of most African novels. Little
wonder, even Elechi Amadi takes a different view of the subject in the novel, The Concubine. The question that often pops
up is, is Elechi Amadi trying to show that love is blind to convention? Truly, parties
in love, especially for the first time, are usually blinded by their own inclination
so much that they tend to ignore everything else. This is the case with Ekwueme
in the story. Despite his awareness of the position of custom and tradition of
the land that a betrothal marriage must be sealed, he goes ahead to propose to Ihuoma,
the beautiful widow. The question is, what does true love imply? Must two
people in love with each other necessarily get married? Does love between two marriageable
opposite sexes always end up in sexual intercourse, in the form of boyfriend
and girlfriend or in the form of married couple? No doubt, EKwueme’s
relationship with Ahurole heads for the rock, not because the young man does not
enjoy sexual pleasure with her, but because his heart longs for someone else,
which is Ihuoma.

Superstition is another
theme in the novel. In the traditional African life, superstition surrounds individuals
like plague, especially with regard to their health. For example, small pox is
considered extremely ominous. The disease is so dreaded that people dared not
call it small pox. Instead, they call it “the good thing” when referring to it.
Also, when a person dies of small pox, people are forbidden to mourn him. Even
during the person’s illness, people must avoid him like plague. That is not
all, even some animals are attached to some superstitious belief. For instance,
it is believed that a vulture does not perch on anyone’s roof except that it
brings a divine message to the household. And after this, people go to consult
the oracle on the import of the message and the befitting sacrifices must
follow. With all these scenes of superstition in the novel Amadi seems to be
concerned with how much harm people must have brought upon themselves due to
ignorance. Due to ignorance in the form of beliefs, lives have been lost,
property and resources wasted and bright hope and future dashed.

Also prominent in the novel
is the issue of death. Death, the destroyer of desires, is portrayed in different
lights in the story. When Emenike dies, because
of what many believe to be lock-chest (even though Okachi,
Ihuoma's mother believes Madume caused it), everybody saw
the need to bury him the proper way. In short, Ihuoma with almost all the
people of Omakachi believe that Emenike was highly honoured, due to the expensive
and glamorous burial ceremony for which many people came from far and near. In
contrast, Madume's death is an eye-sore. Therefore,
the tradition dictates that he must neither be mourned nor be given a grand
second burial. This is because suicide is considered a taboo. In order to prevent
his evil
corpse from affecting
others,
his body will have to be disposed of in the deep forest,
like an animal. Also noteworthy in relation to death in the story is the idea
that,
there is no natural death; that one way or
another a man's death must have been caused by either man or a supernatural
force. For instance, both Eminike and Madume's death is
linked to the Sea-King who so love, and is jealous of, his
mysterious wife Ihuoma, he punishes anyone that threatens or loves her with
death. Even the fine, admirable character in the story, Ekwueme, is not spared the
wrath of the fiery Sea-King.

Closely related to the
theme of death is widowhood. Interestingly, this theme is recurrent
in many African pieces by prominent authors such as Isidore Okpewho in The Last Duty, Mariama Ba in So Long a Letter, Bayo Adebowale in Lonely Days among others. In all of
them, the maltreatment and psychological trauma the widow goes through in the name
of custom and tradition is never left out. This practice is so ingrained on many
traditional African cultures that one wonders if
being a womanin some
parts of Africa is a curse. If not, why should
there
always be widow's rites and not widower's
rites? Why on earth must a woman go through pain and suffering because
her husband died? Most writers who have
so much dwelled on this issue of marriage ask
these questions often.To many, marriage is
regarded as the eternal union between a man and a woman sealed by an
unconditional love. While many people might agree to this definition, others
might ask that the last part "...sealed by an unconditional love" be
removed. In any case, these questions usually come to mind any time this
issue surfaces:
What makes a successful marriage? Is it sex or true love? Must the partner be a
virgin? What is the problem with marrying a widow? Children or not, do not widows
also have the right to love or to sex? Why must couple quarrel in their
first few weeks of wedlock? All of these seem to be Elechi
Amadi's concern in the novel. Ekwueme’s love affair with Ahurole then Ihuomais reflect
these
questions. In short, when we consider Ihuoma's reluctance to accept Ekwueme's
advances and the latter's defilement of the tradition of betrothal,
we would realise that neither love nor sexual desire precedes a successful marriage.
What happens when two people are "forcefully" made to enter into
marital union is reflected in Ekwueme's disappointment in himself a few days
after marrying his betrothed Ahurole. About this, the narrator observes:

"Ekwueme was
annoyed with himself. Before marriage he thought he know all the answers to
domestic problems and vowed that when he got married he would never have to
call in a third party, not even his parents, to decide anything between him and
his wife. He used to despise men who had to beat their wives call in
arbitrators to settle disputes every other day. Now that he was one of them, he
felt confused." (page 143)

The indisputable fact
that all human beings are bound to their fate is also an important issue in The Concubine. The freer we think we are
from our fate the closer we get to it. Whether we like it or not, what will be
will be. This moral essence seems to be the major thrust of the story. Just as
Odewale in Ola Rotimi's classic play, The
Gods Are Not to Blame cannot escape from the grip of his fate, despite all
efforts made to achieve that, Ekwueme's determination to marry Ihuoma by all
means is also to no avail. With this, Elechi Amadi appears
to aver that nothing in life is done or undone except that there is a
supernatural touch to it.

In conclusion, Elechi Amadi's
The Concubine is a unique novel written
in such a way that we as readers see ourselves in it. The struggles, pain, love,
hate, death and other issues treated therein are indeed a reflection of our
humanity.

Monday, May 1, 2017

A 216-page story of the fantastically intriguing
life of Ihuoma as she goes through life in ways too difficult for her to
fathom, The Concubine by Elechi Amadi
is a deep, detailed and traditionally enriching account of love and uncertainty
of life.

The village of Omokachi is the centre of events; it
is bordered by Chiolu, Aliji and Emigwe.

The
Concubine by Elechi Amadi centres round the 22-year old
Ihuoma, a beautiful, gentle and charming woman whose personality is second to
none in the entire village of Omokachi and its environ.

Emenike, Ihuoma's husband has just had a scuffle
with Madume over a land dispute. Even though Emenike beat the stubborn,
egoistic Madume in the fight, he is later to suffer from what is regarded as
'lock-chest'. But after series of divinations and medicines by the highly
regarded Anyika, the medicine man, Emenike passes on, leaving his wife, Ihuoma and
their four children behind.

Quite naturally, the rumour has spread that Emenike
could not have died naturally; that Madume must definitely have killed his
enemy with the use of juju. Even, Okachi, Ihuoma's mother is not surprised by
this rumour. Consoling her daughter in her compound, she has this conversation
with her:

'Kaka, do you think
that that fight caused his death?' Ihuoma asked in an undertone.

'What else caused it?'

'I thought it was
"lock-chest.'

'But what brought about
the lock-chest?'

'He worked too hard in
the rain.'

'Was that the first
time he had worked under the rain? No, my child, we know what happened to him.
Amadioha will kill them one by one.' (page 21)

Now a widow, Ihuoma has metamorphosed into a full
woman, in spite of her young age. Even though she has her doubts and fear of
the unknown in the guise of nightmares and hallucinations, her doggedness and
homely character through the lonely, dreadful period of widowhood has won many
people to her side. Everywhere she goes, she is often regarded highly and is
envied. But what seems to be so charming about her is her resourcefulness throughout
the burial rites. It is such a huge ceremony that many believe will wear her
out.

At the end of her mourning period, Ihuoma looks radiant,
as before; her beauty is so enchanting, she has become the cynosure of all eyes
in the entire village. The raining season approaches and Ihuoma's roofs need
some thatching. His well-meaning brother-in-law, Nnadi alongside his friends:
Wakiri and Ekwueme come to her aid. But unknown to Nnadi, Ekwe as he is fondly
called by many, is interested in the widow. His first attempt at winning Ihuoma
over fails; his guts to bear out his mind to her fail him and he goes home
dejected. The next day he tells his mother about the nightmare he has had in
the night: 'Emenike and others tried to drag me across a stream in a dream.'
(page 50)

Even Madume, a man believed to have killed Emenike,
is lusting after the beautiful woman. After a failed attempt to make his wife,
Wolu, convey his message of love to Ihuoma, he goes arrogantly to tell the
woman himself. But his mission is soon aborted and he comes home limping, with
a badly injured toe. Anyika, the famous dibia, has barely helped him overcome
the injury when again he decides to harass the young Ihuoma at her husband's
farm. Threatening to cut down a branch of a banana in reaction to Nnadi's
daring him to do so, he is spat into in the eyes by a spitting cobra. Then he
transfers his aggression to everyone around him including his household and the
elders. Frustrated and miserable, he commits suicide. As a tradition, his body
is to be taken far away from the village and thrown into the deep forest.
Worse, there will be no mourning, no second burial in his honour.

Madume's death notwithstanding, music, which has
been a very potent medicine that heals every wound of worry and tribulations
anyone might be dealing with in the village of Omokachi, cannot be stopped. It
is a successful Dance Festival as Ekwueme, Mmam, Wakiri, the clown, treat
everyone to sonorous and interesting songs to which people, man, and woman, young
and old gyrate their body. After all, life is too serious an experience not to
have some moment for pleasure. Amidst this fanfare, Ekwueme finally proposes to
Ihuoma. But as a wise woman who is deeply rooted in the ways of the people, she
declines because he is already betrothed to Ahurole, another girl from her own
village, Omigwe.

Upon hearing the love affair between his son and the
widow, Wigwe, Ekwe's father, cunningly asks Ihuoma on his son's behalf whether
she will marry him. Expectedly, the answer is no. Wigwe along with his wife,
Adaku, will not stop there. They must eliminate every obstacle in the way. So,
the marriage ceremony that is supposed to take a year is speedily arranged in six
months. Finally, the young man is successfully married to Ahurole. However, the
marriage is soon short-lived, as Ekwueme cannot put up with his wife's
consistent nagging and sulking. This makes him remember Ihuoma a lot. But the
last straw that broke the camel's back is when Ahurole catches his husband
inside Ihuoma's compound, pretending to be searching for the lost she-goat. This
so anger Ahurole that she goes to her mother's and explains what has happened.
She advises her to get a love potion from Anyika, if she must tie down her
husband’s love to herself alone. But the expert medicine man warns her thus:

'I am sure you have
seen active and intelligent men suddenly become passive, stupid and dependent.
That is what love potion can do. So go and settle your differences with your
husband peacefully. If you insist you must go somewhere else.' (page 159)

The mother is indeed persistent and she goes to
Chiolu where she gets the love potion. But the resultant effect is devastating:
rather than love Ahurole Ekwe goes berserk, to the extent that the entire
village goes in search of him. He is later to be found on top of a tree armed
with a cub daring anyone to disturb him. All efforts to make him come down from
the tree proved futile until he starts to mumble Ihuoma's name. She is fetched
and on seeing him, the troubled young man descends the tree.

Thereafter, Ekwueme will not take any medicine
unless Ihuoma is present. In fact, she is the only one he talks to. After his
recovery, he convinces his troubled parents of his intention to marry Ihuoma. Fearing
that he might resort to his old self, and thinking the move worthwhile a reward
for Ihuoma's assistance during their son's troubled moments, they give in.

Meanwhile, Ahurole has fled and has joined her
parents. Wagbara, her father has to return the bride price paid on her.

But that is not the end of the trouble with the poor
Ekwueme. Though Nnadi, Ihuoma's brother-in-law has consented to the marriage,
Ekwueme has one more hurdle to cross: Anyika proposes divination before the
bride price is paid.

Most shocking is the dibia's divination. Ekwueme is taken
to Anyinka, the best medicine man in Omokachi who divines that the lover boy
will be destroyed if he goes ahead to marry the widow. The reason is that
Ihuoma is a sea-goddess from birth whom has been married to the proud and
jealous Seak-King who kills anyone who marries her. However, if the Sea-King is
appeased through powerful sacrifices he could still allow Ekwueme to be
Ihuoma's concubine.

But Ekwueme and his parents will not believe this
story entirely unless they try another medicine man. So off they go to Aliji,
another village far away from Omokachi. There they meet Agwoturumbe, an equally
powerful but boastful dibia, who tells them the same story as Anyika has done.
However, unlike Anyika, he believes he possesses the powers to disarm the
deadly Sea-King from harming Ekwueme. But this will be in the form of sacrifices
that will involve himself, Ekwe and Wigwe.

All is set for the sacrifice except one thing -- the
multi-coloured lizard. Even this Ekwe has sent for the little boys around to
handle. As Agwoturumbe, the hired dibia, is getting set for the sacrifice,
Nwonna's barbed arrow which has missed a lizard it was targeted at, hits
Ekwueme in the belly as he stands from where he and his wife-to-be, Ihuoma,
have been fondling each other, to see how well the preparation is going.

And then: ‘The Spirit of Death was known to take
away people's souls shortly after midnight. That was when Ekwueme died.’ (page
216)

This closing of The
Concubine by Elechi Amadi is particularly striking. It leaves the reader
with thoughts on the irreversible power of destiny.

Did you enjoy this essay? What particularly interests
you the most about The Concubine by
Elechi Amadi?

Leave your thoughts in the comment box below. We love to hear from you.

Monday, April 17, 2017

Of course we all want to be
exceptionally successful, right? Sure. From being financially independent to getting
married to the best woman in the world, our success is tied to the things that
make us feel fulfilled in life. But the question is, what do you do that will
lead you to discovering those things from which you can derive true happiness.

Below is a list of 13 unique ways to
live an exceptionally successful life.

1. Find Yourself

What brings you to life? What makes you
glow with pride? What’s your passion? Look inward; know your strengths and
weaknesses. Focus on your strengths and don't let your weaknesses weigh you
down. When you do this, you have already set the ball in motion towards living
an exceptionally successful life.

2. Set your goals

What’s your ambition in life? Put them
into writing. Make a list of daily activities and follow it religiously. Note the
things you enjoy doing consistently. Give yourself a plan: within five months,
for instance, work hard on your plans and stick to them. When you do so, you’re
on your way to living a successful life.

3. Personal growth

You can't be exceptionally successful if
you don't develop yourself. Attend seminars and workshops where you will get
ideas on how to do things differently. And
by doing so you get to meet successful people who will inspire you.

4. Align yourself with positive and
like-minded people

Be with those that understand your dreams
and your goals, those that will encourage you to go on. People that will put
you back on track when you fail and those you can look up to.

5. Be productive

Try your best to work hard and be productive
both at work and at home. Don't use the whole day to watch TV when you have
things to do. Be innovative too, try new things and see what works best for
you. Being productive entails doing what one knows how to do consistently
without fear of failure.

6. Read always

Use at least an hour a day to read books
that will develop you personally. But reading alone isn’t enough; learning from
it is more important. When you read and imbibe the lessons from what you’ve
read, you’re opening up a new world of opportunities for yourself. Read biographies
of great men, especially in your own field. It will motivate you and make you
live an exceptionally successful life.

7. Partner with people

You don't have to have the money to
start that business. You also need the drive. You should be able to convince
that person that has the money, write the business proposal, look for the best
in the field, partner with them and rise through them. It's one of the unique
ways to be exceptionally successful.

8. Take risks

You want to venture into that business
but you’re scared to take the plunge? Come on, just do it. How would you know
what you’re capable of when you haven’t tried. Make your findings and take the
big leap. It's always worth it, and if it doesn't work that way, it doesn't
mean you will relent. If you make mistakes, you try to learn from them.

9. Live within your means

Living within your means is the best
thing to work towards the success ladder. You can't be earning less and be
living large. How do you want to balance it up? Even if one has the money to
spend, that doesn't mean you should spend it frivolously. Save for the rainy
days, you will be glad you did.

10. Be generous and kind

Generosity takes you a long way. Don't
be selfish in your act. Those you are generous to will look up to you. Find
time to help people. At some points in our lives, we often realize that it's
not all about money. Try help with the household chores if you are a man, help
your kids, help people in your neighbourhood; bekind to people. Set up a water stand where you know people will pass
to drink, plant a tree, lift people up, pay for someone's school fees, see life
in other people's perspectives. The fulfillment in doing it is much better than
the ‘thank you’ you'll receive. According to Albert Einstein, ‘only a life
lived for others is a life worthwhile.’

11. Have a good mentor

Have someone you will look up to,
someone that can advise you, someone that will put you through life. I realized
people that have mentors climb up the ladder of success very fast and are
always exceptional.

12. Be honest

Be honest in your dealings. Honesty and
success are inseparable. If both you and your partners agreed on something,
don't go behind their back to do something else. If you really want to become
exceptionally successful, you should try to protect your integrity. Nothing good
comes after losing one’s dignity.

13. Take care of you

Taking good care of everything of yours
is an indispensable ingredient for becoming successful. Charity begins at home,
right? Chasing after success at the expense of your loved ones isn’t a great
move. Keep friends and foes close. Without any of these, you won’t know how far
nor how well you’ve fared. Your body is key: nourish and exercise it. Feed your
mind with positive thoughts always. When you do this, you’re on your way to being successful.

We all want to become successful in
life. But often times we think we must engage in tedious activities and surround
ourselves with demigods to achieve this. But this is not the case. If we can
only follow the unique ways to becoming exceptionally successful above, we
would realize how close we are to our goals.

Tuesday, April 11, 2017

Senegalese author and
feminist, Mariama
Bâ, was born on the 29th of April
1929. Mariama's early life
encompasses the struggle to get educated in an atmosphere where females were
denied access to equal opportunities as their male counterparts. It is however
ironic that young Mariama was born into a home of highly educated parents in
Dakar, where she lived with her family. Her father was a civil servant who
later became one of the first ministers of the State – Health Minister, in 1956.
Her grandfather at that period interpreted for the French Occupation Regime.

However, Mariama’s privileged
upbringing was cut short when her mother died. So she had to be groomed by her maternal
grandparents who were steeped in the cultural and traditional way of living.
All of these experiences restricted her exposure, little wonder she only spent
her early years in French school, combining Quranic studies with the French
studies. But through these times, Bâ's father
never left her. He became her second teacher. He made sure she was able to read
French fluently, and took her on tour while he worked for sometimes in Dahomey,
now Benin Republic.

Despite the countering forces
of Bâ's maternal grandparents, her father ensured he gave
his best to see her presentable and fulfilled through education, the best
legacy. Berthe Maubert, Mariama's French teacher, proved helpful too. She
taught her the basics, the reading and writing, and was supportive throughout
that period.

Throughout her Arabic school,
Bâ was focused and determined to succeed despite apparent
challenges. She excelled as the best student with the highest score in a West African competition, automatically gaining admission into one of the best French training schools – the Ecole
Normale de Rufisque.

After her secondary studies, Mariama
trained as a teacher. She taught for 12 years (1947 - 1959) before she was
transferred to the Regional Inspectorate of teaching as an educational
inspector. There her writing muse was born. In her early works, she acknowledged the
efforts of her teachers and grandmother; all were great influence to her
writing prowess.

Une si Longue Lettre, translated,
as So Long a Letter, was Bâ's first novel published in 1979. The novella expresses
Mariama’s empathy for African women as they go through the unnecessary, overwhelming
exercise of traditional superstitions. She depicts the sorrow a widow
(Ramatoulaye), faces at the death of her husband (Moudou Fall) which forces her
to resign and resume mourning with his younger wife. So Long a Letter, like twilight, became popular and widely accepted
especially Africa women. Written in French, the novella was translated into
English, Dutch, German, Japanese, Russian, and Swedish within a short time.
Abiola Irele described the piece as "the most deeply felt presentation of
the female condition in African fiction." In addition, the work also won
the first prize in Noma for African Publishing in 1980.

Mariama
Bâ was said to have strongly opposed feminism and
supported women's empowerment instead. She wrote and spoke in local and
international newspapers about this. Her immense contributions were felt in the
nooks and crannies of African continent as issues treated in the novella resonated
with an unimaginable number of people, mostly married women.

Apart from So Long a Letter, Mariama also came up
with Political Function of African Literature in 1981. She states firmly in it
the strength of a woman in the development of Africa. She believes every woman
contributes to the growth and welfare of the nation. Mariama would not have
stopped at that, however, a prolonged health condition terminated her progress
shortly before her second novel, The
Scarlet Song, was published in 1986. At the time, she was mother of nine,
married to Obeye Diop, a member of the parliament in Senegal whom she later
divorced. So up till her death she was a dogged and focused single parent.

To recognise Mariama Bâ’s immense contributions to Senegalese literature, a
school founded in 1977 by Leopold Sedar Senghor, first president of Senegal,
was named after her. The school stood as a learning centre for selected
Senegalese students who did excellently well in their entry examinations.
Students from a11 regions of Senegal had the opportunity to attend the school
all their remaining years.

Mariama
Bâ, who died on August 17, 1981, was
an epitome of courage and steadfastness, not only in her personal life, but
also in her strategic contributions to Africa and particularly women's world.